Newt Gingrich vows to establish a colony on the moon if he's elected president

View full sizeMatt Rourke / APSupporters cheer for Republican presidential candidate and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich during an event Tuesday at a Hobby Lobby parking lot in Fort Myers, Fla.

COCOA, Fla. (AP) — Newt Gingrich is promising to establish a permanent base on the moon by 2020 if he’s elected president.

Gingrich, the former House speaker, told an overflow crowd gathered on Florida’s space coast Wednesday that he wants to develop a robust commercial space industry in line with the airline boom of the 1930s. He also wants to expand exploration of Mars.

The pronouncements appeared to thrill the crowd of roughly 700 people. Florida’s space coast is still suffering from a recent round of federal cuts to the space program.

But how would Gingrich pay for it? The Republican presidential contender says he wants to offer prizes to help stimulate investment by the private sector.